MCPS LEARNING FOR THE FUTURE A PARENT S GUIDE TO KINDERGARTEN CURRICULUM 2.0

Transcription

1 MCPS LEARNING FOR THE FUTURE A PARENT S GUIDE TO KINDERGARTEN CURRICULUM 2.0

2 BOARD OF EDUCATION Mrs. Patricia B. O Neill President Mr. Michael A. Durso Vice President Mr. Christopher S. Barclay Dr. Judith R. Docca Mr. Philip Kauffman Ms. Jill Ortman-Fouse Mrs. Rebecca Smondrowski Mr. Eric Guerci Student Member SCHOOL ADMINISTRATION Mr. Larry A. Bowers Interim Superintendent of Schools Dr. Maria V. Navarro Chief Academic Officer Dr. Kimberly A. Statham Deputy Superintendent of School Support and Improvement Dr. Andrew M. Zuckerman Chief Operating Officer VISION We inspire learning by providing the greatest public education to each and every student. MISSION Every student will have the academic, creative problem solving, and social emotional skills to be successful in college and career. CORE PURPOSE Prepare all students to thrive in their future. CORE VALUES Learning Relationships Respect Excellence Equity

3 CURRICULUM 2.0 broadens instruction beyond reading and mathematics to engage the whole child. Ten subject areas at the elementary level art, health education, information literacy, mathematics, music, physical education, reading, science, social studies, and writing have been refocused around the critical and creative thinking and academic success skills students need for a lifetime of learning. There are four major features of Curriculum 2.0: We need to prepare students for THEIR future, not OUR past. Ian Jukes Educator and Futurist Internationally driven standards in mathematics, reading, and writing: Mathematics, reading, and writing are based on the rigorous Common Core State Standards (CCSS). These standards, adopted by Maryland in June 2010, describe the content that students must learn at each grade level and are designed to help U.S. students compete favorably with students around the world. A focus on teaching the whole child: The curriculum provides more instructional focus on subjects such as the arts, information literacy, physical education, science, and social studies by blending them with mathematics, reading, and writing. Students will receive instruction across all subjects in elementary school. Integrated thinking, reasoning, and creativity: The integration of thinking and academic success skills or those skills that contribute to students ability to creatively solve problems collaboratively, interpret multiple perspectives, analyze complex data, and understand connections among a variety of ideas is the unique aspect of Curriculum 2.0. These skills have been identified in the educational research as the tools necessary to thrive in the 21st century knowledge-based global economy. Communication of student progress through a standards-based report card: The elementary school report card is aligned with the concepts and topics taught in Curriculum 2.0 each marking period. The quarterly report card provides feedback to students and parents throughout the year about how well students are meeting academic standards compared with grade-level expectations. Curriculum 2.0 deeply engages students and helps them develop the skills they need to thrive in school and beyond. MCPS CURRICULUM 2.0 3

4 THINKING AND ACADEMIC SUCCESS SKILLS Students who thrive academically, socially, and emotionally know more than just facts. They have a certain set of skills that enable them to learn and succeed in almost any environment. These include critical thinking, creative thinking, and academic success skills. The chart on the right describes the thinking and academic success skills that are integrated throughout Curriculum 2.0 as students progress through elementary school. 4 CURRICULUM 2.0 KINDERGARTEN

5 CRITICAL THINKING SKILLS CREATIVE THINKING SKILLS ACADEMIC SUCCESS SKILLS Critical thinking involves being objective and open-minded while thinking carefully about what to do or what to believe, based on evidence and reason. Analysis Noticing what s alike and what s different Describing what parts make up a whole Looking for patterns Seeing how things fit together Sorting objects Evaluation Questioning facts and claims, including your own Demanding evidence Checking the reliability of information you re viewing or reading Knowing what to do when two sources of information conflict Ranking options based on criteria Synthesis Putting things back together after taking them apart Seeing how new ideas come from other ideas Making something new out of the parts you already have Organizing your thoughts Creative thinking involves putting facts, concepts, and principles together in new ways and demonstrating a novel way of seeing or doing things. Elaboration Including descriptive details in your writing, conversations, and art work Explaining something exactly how it happened takes time Explaining your thinking Flexibility Considering the ideas and thoughts of others Questioning answers you re given Asking why questions Changing your thinking based on evidence or new ideas Fluency Coming up with many new ideas Expressing your ideas or thoughts by writing, drawing, talking, or acting Showing the same thing in many ways Knowing many ways to answer a question Originality Creating new ideas and products Explaining your answers in new and inventive ways Turning ideas and products of others into something new Seeing problems as a chance to solve something in a new way Academic success involves possessing attitudes and behaviors that enable students to reach their full potential in academic settings. Collaboration Respecting the ideas of others Asking other people what they think Working with others to accomplish a goal or task Knowing how to lead a group and be a member of a group Effort/Motivation/Persistence Challenging yourself to accomplish difficult tasks Thinking of additional ways to reach your goal when things get difficult Never giving up. Asking for help when learning is difficult Intellectual Risk Taking Asking questions to help you understand every day Sharing what you re thinking in a group Sharing your ideas and answering questions, even when you re unsure Challenging yourself to rise to the next level Metacognition Thinking about Thinking Thinking about what you already know about a topic before learning more Noticing the ways you learn best and asking for help when you re struggling Explaining your thinking MCPS CURRICULUM 2.0 5

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7 Teaching for creativity aims to encourage self-confidence, independence of mind, and the capacity to think for oneself. Sir Ken Robinson, Out of Our Minds: Learning to be Creative IN CURRICULUM 2.0, KINDERGARTEN, specific critical and creative thinking and academic success skills are identified for each marking period. These skills are explicitly taught through the concepts and topics in the 10 content areas and provide a focus for integration across subjects. Art General Music Health Education Information Literacy Mathematics Physical Education Reading/Language Arts Science, Technology, and Engineering Social Studies Writing The following pages highlight the critical thinking, creative thinking, and academic success skills along with the curriculum concepts and topics that are the focus of instruction in each marking period for Kindergarten students. Curriculum 2.0 is built around developing students critical and creative thinking skills, as well as essential academic success skills, which will lead to college and career readiness in the 21st century. MCPS CURRICULUM 2.0 7

8 MARKING PERIOD 1 Bulleted concepts in red are graded on the report card for Semester 1. Analysis (Critical Thinking Skill) Breaking down a whole into parts that may not be immediately obvious and examining the parts so that the structure of the whole is understood. Identify and describe attributes. Compare by identifying similarities and differences. Sort and classify into categories. Identify and describe patterns and the relationships within patterns. Collaboration (Academic Success Skill) Working effectively and respectfully to reach a group goal. Demonstrate active listening and empathy in communicating with group members. Solicit and respect multiple and diverse perspectives to broaden and deepen understanding. Demonstrate teamwork by working productively with others. READING/LANGUAGE ARTS Foundational Skills: Demonstrate understanding of features of print, upper- and lowercase letters, spoken words, syllables, letter sound relationships; know and apply grade-level phonics. Text Reading and Comprehension: Poetry, fiction, traditional stories, and informational text; identify parts of a book; read with purpose and understanding; with prompting and support identify characters, setting, major events in stories and features of a book; ask and answer questions about details in a text; engage in group reading activities; describe relationship between illustrations and text. Listening: Confirm understanding of a text read aloud; ask and answer questions. Speaking: Collaborative conversations; speak audibly to express thoughts, feelings and ideas clearly. Vocabulary Acquisition and Use: Use words and phrases acquired through conversation, reading, being read to, and responding to texts. SOCIAL STUDIES Civics: Classroom routines and schedules; importance of rules; rights and responsibilities at school and home; common United States symbols and practices; contributions of people to the United States. SCIENCE, TECHNOLOGY, AND ENGINEERING Earth and Space Sciences: Weather observations, attributes, patterns; seasonal changes. Life Sciences: Plant and animal life cycles; external features; diversity; adaptations for survival. WRITING Expression of Thoughts and Ideas: Use drawing, dictating, and writing to compose narrative pieces; describe familiar people, places, and things. Processes: With guidance respond to questions and feedback to add details and strengthen writing; recall experiences or gather information to answer questions; add drawings or visuals to provide detail to writing. LANGUAGE Conventions of Written Language: Print upper- and lowercase letters; use nouns and verbs; expand sentences in shared language activities; write consonant sounds; spell simple words phonetically. 8 CURRICULUM 2.0 KINDERGARTEN

9 ANALYSIS AND COLLABORATION MATHEMATICS Counting and Cardinality: Count, compare, and represent quantities. Measurement and Data: Sort and classify; compare lengths. Geometry: Positional words. GENERAL MUSIC Performing Music: Explore steady beat; perform singing games and finger plays. Responding to Music: Respond to music through movement; identify fast and slow sounds. ART Creating Art/Responding to Art: Explore elements of art in artworks and the environment. HEALTH EDUCATION Mental and Emotional Health: Methods of communication; feelings and emotions; positive character traits contributing to uniqueness. Alcohol, Tobacco, and Other Drugs: Safe use of medicines. PHYSICAL EDUCATION Movement Skills and Concepts: Locomotor skills (walk, run, hop, jump, gallop). Personal and Social Responsibility: Cooperation, responsibility, and respect in physical activity settings. Curriculum 2.0 deeply engages students and helps them develop the skills they need to thrive in school and beyond. INFORMATION LITERACY Borrowing routines and rules. Book selection and care. Organization of library media center. Questioning strategies. Making connections to literature. MCPS CURRICULUM 2.0 9

10 MARKING PERIOD 2 Bulleted concepts in blue are graded on the report card for Semester 1. Fluency (Creative Thinking Skill) Generating multiple responses to a problem or an idea. Generate many ideas. Represent and describe ideas or solutions in a variety of ways. Intellectual Risk Taking (Academic Success Skill) Accepting uncertainty or challenging the norm to reach a goal. Adapt and make adjustments to meet challenges when seeking solutions. Demonstrate willingness to accept uncertainty by sharing ideas, asking questions, or attempting novel tasks. SOCIAL STUDIES Geography: Tools used to describe Earth s surface (pictures, maps, and globes); human-made and physical features used to describe Earth s surface; humans change and adapt to the environment. READING/LANGUAGE ARTS Foundational Skills: Demonstrate understanding of features of print, upper- and lowercase letters, spoken words, syllables, letter sound relationships; know and apply grade-level phonics. Text Reading and Comprehension: Poetry, fiction, traditional stories, and informational text; Junior Great Books; read with purpose and understanding; with prompting and support ask and answer questions about key details and unknown words; describe relationship between illustrations and the story or text; engage in group reading activities; identify characters, setting, and major events; retell familiar stories; role of author and illustrator; main topic; common text types. LANGUAGE Listening: Confirm understanding of a text read aloud; ask and answer questions. Speaking: Collaborative conversations; speak audibly to express thoughts, feelings and ideas clearly. Vocabulary Acquisition and Use: Use words and phrases acquired through conversations, reading, and being read to; respond to text; with guidance and support explore word relationships and nuances in word meanings. WRITING SCIENCE, TECHNOLOGY, AND ENGINEERING Life Sciences: Basic needs of plants and animals; life cycles of plants and animals; comparison between offspring and parents. Expression of Thoughts and Ideas: Use drawing, dictating, and writing to compose narrative and informative/explanatory pieces. Processes: With guidance respond to questions and feedback to add details and strengthen writing; recall experiences or gather information to answer questions; add drawings or visuals to provide detail to writing. LANGUAGE Conventions of Written Language: Print upper- and lowercase letters; use nouns and verbs; use question words; expand sentences in shared language activities; recognize end punctuation; write consonant and vowel sounds; spell simple words phonetically; capitalize first word in sentences. 10 CURRICULUM 2.0 KINDERGARTEN

11 FLUENCY AND INTELLECTUAL RISK TAKING MATHEMATICS Counting and Cardinality: Count strategies; represent, compare, and count out quantities. Operations and Algebraic Thinking: Multiple ways to decompose numbers to 10 into two parts. GENERAL MUSIC Performing Music: Explore steady beat; perform singing games and finger plays. Responding to Music: Respond to music through movement; identify loud and soft sounds. Measurement and Data: Compare lengths and weights. ART Creating Art/Responding to Art: Explore elements of art to express ideas; identify and create two- or three-dimensional art; explore basic principles of design; describe relationships of objects in a composition; create and arrange objects to compose artwork. HEALTH EDUCATION Personal and Consumer Health: Ways to take care of and keep the body clean; hand-washing steps. Safety and Injury: Responding to emergencies; safety rules and procedures traffic, fire, automobile safety, separation from trusted adult. PHYSICAL EDUCATION Movement Skills and Concepts: Relationships with objects (inside/outside, around, through, under/over, on/off, across, near/far, and in front/behind); catch self-tossed objects in selfspace; throw underhand. Health-Enhancing Physical Fitness and Activity: Effects of exercise on the heart. INFORMATION LITERACY Characteristics and relationships among library resources. Questioning (inquiry) strategies based on informational need (who, what, where, when, why, how). Strategies for finding and recording answers to questions. Making connections to literature. MCPS CURRICULUM

12 MARKING PERIOD 3 Bulleted concepts in green are graded on the report card for Semester 2. Synthesis (Critical Thinking Skill) Putting parts together to build understanding of a whole concept or form a new or unique whole. Organize parts to form a new or unique whole. Effort/Motivation/Persistence (Academic Success Skill) Working diligently and applying effective strategies to achieve a goal or solve a problem; continuing in the face of obstacles and competing pressures. Demonstrate strategies to achieve a goal or solve a problem. Self-assess effectiveness of strategies and redirect efforts to achieve a goal or obtain a solution to a problem. READING/LANGUAGE ARTS Foundational Skills: Demonstrate understanding of features of print, upper- and lowercase letters, spoken words, syllables, letter sound relationships; know and apply grade-level phonics. Text Reading and Comprehension: Poetry, fiction, traditional stories, and informational text; Junior Great Books; read with purpose and understanding; with prompting and support ask and answer questions about key details and unknown words in text; identify characters, settings, and major events in a story; describe the relationship between text and illustrations; compare/ contrast experiences of characters; identify main topic and retell key details; engage in group reading activities. LANGUAGE Listening: Confirm understanding of a text read aloud; ask and answer questions. Speaking: Collaborative conversations; speak audibly to express thoughts, feelings and ideas clearly. SOCIAL STUDIES Economics: Situations where choices are made; workers and the jobs they do; goods people make and grow; resources used to produce goods and provide services; tools and machines used to work and play; ways to obtain goods and services. Vocabulary Acquisition and Use: Use words and phrases acquired through conversations, reading, and being read to; respond to text; with guidance and support explore word relationships and nuances in word meanings; determine or clarify the meaning of unknown and multiple-meaning words. SCIENCE, TECHNOLOGY, AND ENGINEERING Life Sciences: External features of plants and animals used for survival; identification of local plants and animals; animal classification; comparisons between different plants; comparisons between different animals, including humans. 12 CURRICULUM 2.0 KINDERGARTEN WRITING Expression of Thoughts and Ideas: Use drawing, dictating, and writing to compose informative/explanatory pieces; compose narrative pieces. Processes: With guidance respond to questions and feedback to add details and strengthen writing; recall experiences or gather information to answer questions; add drawings or visuals to provide detail to writing; describe familiar people, places, things, and events; participate in shared research. LANGUAGE Conventions of Written Language: Print upper- and lowercase letters; use nouns and verbs; expand sentences in shared language activities; capitalize first word in sentences; recognize end punctuation; write consonant and vowel sounds; spell simple words phonetically; use question words.

13 SYNTHESIS AND EFFORT/MOTIVATION/PERSISTENCE MATHEMATICS Counting and Cardinality: Count forward from a number other than one. Operations and Algebraic Thinking: Connect counting to addition and subtraction; solve addition and subtraction word problems. GENERAL MUSIC Reading Music: Produce sounds in response to icons representing long and short sounds. Performing Music: Sing within a limited vocal range. Responding to Music: Identify repeated sections in music; identify long and short sounds. Geometry: Identify, describe, model, and combine two- and three-dimensional shapes; positional words. ART Creating Art/Responding to Art: Represent what is observed; create functional art; identify reasons for creating art; create artwork from imagination. HEALTH EDUCATION Nutrition and Fitness: Food appearance and senses; food sources and categories; relationship between food and health; manners Family Life and Human Sexuality: Family unit; members of a family; family structures in media. PHYSICAL EDUCATION Health-Enhancing Physical Fitness and Activity: Healthy and unhealthy choices to promote fitness. Movement Skills and Concepts: Fundamental jumping and landing patterns (two-foot takeoff and landing); static balance; weight transfer (hands and feet). INFORMATION LITERACY Questioning and keyword (inquiry) strategies based on informational need. Strategies for finding and recording answers to questions. Making connections to literature, authors, illustrators and opinions. Share writing using digital tool. MCPS CURRICULUM

14 MARKING PERIOD 4 Bulleted concepts in yellow are graded on the report card for Semester 2. Originality (Creative Thinking Skill) Creating ideas and solutions that are novel or unique to the individual, group, or situation. Create a new idea, process, or product using multiple and varied formats. Plan and formulate a new, unique, or alternative solution to a problem or situation. Transform an idea, process, or product into a new form. Metacognition (Academic Success Skill) Knowing and being aware of one s own thinking and having the ability to monitor and evaluate one s own thinking. Examine one s own thoughts and ideas to identify background knowledge. Explain thinking processes. READING/LANGUAGE ARTS Foundational Skills: Demonstrate understanding of features of print, upper- and lowercase letters, spoken words, syllables, letter sound relationships; know and apply grade-level phonics. Text Reading and Comprehension: Poetry, fiction, traditional stories, and informational text; Junior Great Books; read with purpose and understanding; with prompting and support ask and answer questions about key details and unknown words; recognize types of texts; compare/contrast experiences of characters; identify main topic and the reasons an author gives to support points; retell key details; engage in group reading activities; role of author and illustrator; connections between information in text; similarities and differences in two texts on the same topic. LANGUAGE Listening: Confirm understanding of a text read aloud; ask and answer questions. Speaking: Collaborative conversations; speak audibly to express thoughts, feelings and ideas clearly. SOCIAL STUDIES Culture: Choices people make about meeting needs (tools, toys, transportation, communication, food, shelter); unique customs, traditions, skills, and interests of community members; family heritage. History: Differences among past, present, and future time; daily life and objects of today and long ago. Vocabulary Acquisition and Use: Use words and phrases acquired through conversations, reading, and being read to; respond to text; with guidance and support explore word relationships and nuances in word meanings; determine or clarify the meaning of unknown and multiple-meaning words. WRITING SCIENCE, TECHNOLOGY, AND ENGINEERING Life Sciences: Similarities and differences of external features and adaptations; adaptations of plants and animals to survive in an environment; interactions between plants and animals and their environment. Expression of Thoughts and Ideas: Use drawing, dictating, and writing to compose informative/explanatory pieces; narrative pieces; and opinion pieces. Processes: With guidance respond to questions and feedback to add details and strengthen writing; use digital tools to produce writing; participate in shared research and writing projects; recall experiences or gather information to answer questions; add drawings or visuals to provide detail to writing; describe familiar people, places, things, and events. LANGUAGE Conventions of Written Language: Print upper- and lowercase letters; use nouns and verbs; capitalize first word in sentences; recognize end punctuation; write consonant and vowel sounds; spell simple words phonetically; use question words. 14 CURRICULUM 2.0 KINDERGARTEN

15 ORIGINALITY AND METACOGNITION MATHEMATICS Counting and Cardinality: Count to 100; count forward from a number other than one. Operations and Algebraic Thinking: Addition and subtraction within 10; solve addition and subtraction word problems. Number and Operations in Base Ten: Understand the numbers as a group of 10 ones and some more ones. Measurement and Data: Classify objects and count the number in each category. GENERAL MUSIC Performing Music: Sing within a limited vocal range. Reading Music: Produce sounds in response to icons representing high and low sounds. Responding to Music: Identify high and low sounds. The Curriculum 2.0 report card provides feedback to students and parents throughout the year about how well students are meeting academic standards compared with grade-level expectations. HEALTH EDUCATION Disease Prevention and Control: Definition of disease; actions to prevent illness. ART Creating Art/Responding to Art: Represent from observation, memory, and imagination; experiment with visual art processes. INFORMATION LITERACY Questioning (inquiry) strategies. Production strategies. Making connections to literature, authors, illustrators, and opinions. Share writing using digital tool. PHYSICAL EDUCATION Movement Skills and Concepts: Strike lightweight objects with hands; kick (stationary ball). Personal and Social Responsibility: Identify the relationship between effort, practice, and improvement. MCPS CURRICULUM

16 HOW PARENTS CAN HELP You want your child to succeed in school and in life. There are many ways to encourage him or her to achieve. Following are some of the many ways you can help your child get the most out of school: Show interest in what your child is doing in school. Set high expectations for your child. Make it clear that school should be his or her first priority. Dedicate at least 15 minutes each day to talking with your child and reading with him or her. Provide a quiet place for your child to study. Help your child with his or her homework. Limit the amount of television your child watches and discuss what he or she sees on television. Monitor the amount of time your child spends playing video games or surfing the Internet. Volunteer to help with school activities and try to get other parents involved as well. Talk with your child s teachers regularly about your child s progress and what you can do to help him or her improve. Encourage your child to complete challenging work. Adapted from A Parent s Guide to Achievement Matters Most, Maryland State Department of Education. The MCPS Parent Academy offers free workshops that provide parents with information and resources to support their children s success in school. For more information, visit Additional information about Curriculum 2.0 is available at Montgomery County Public Schools 850 Hungerford Drive Rockville, Maryland Published by the Department of Materials Management for the Office of Curriculum and Instructional Programs ct Editorial, Graphics & Publishing Services 8/15 16K